I personally think the choice to include your children is up to you. only you know your horses, your abilities as a rider, your terrain....I take it someone has suggested there is a problem?

My concern is when parents allow kids too much unsupervised activity with horses. I have seen very small kids, leading and riding horses in such a manner I feel they are asking for trouble. I was watching as a 4 yr old riding, a large horse in a crowded arena at a show, got dumped when the kid lost control and rammed into other horses.

 if you keep the safety and welfare of your family in mind and not take silly risks, then you have done your job as a parent. You cannot control every situation in life.....

To be honest it makes me nervous when I see small children up on horses. There is no such thing as a perfect bomb proof horse.  One big horse fly sting in the right place and the rear ends come up on any horse.  I have responded to too many bad accidents involving kids and horses, even with helmuts on.  You have to understand if a child falls from a 15 hand horse it is the equivelant to an adult falling from 10 feet up.   Of course, the parents meaning well always seem to move the child before we can get there and if they have a broken back or neck, that can mean paralyzing your child.  Anytime a child falls more than 5 ft you should never move them! 

I have learned that there is no such thing as a truly safe horse.  They are all animals, with a mind of their own and they are flight animals. 

As others have said, only you know your horse partner and your riding skills.  You have to also remember it is your childs life in your hands and riding capability.  I will not allow anyone to ride double on any of my horses, not because they are not well trained, but because any horse is unpredictible and I will not put someone at risk for mine or their enjoyment.  I guess working in the medical field in a rural community you see many things regular folks don't.   It is not as rare of an occurance as you would think.

If you wish to do this, make sure you have a cell phone with you when you ride, put a protective vest on your child, as well as a helmet that fits properly. Also, be sure your child has a boots on and pants.  I have seen what wearing tennis shoes and shorts can do to a child involved in a riding accident.  It is not pretty at all. 

Whatever you choose to do is up to you. I don't mean to scare you, but sometimes seeing things from another perspective helps.   Obviously you have some second thoughts on it or else you would not have asked the group for their feelings on the subject.  Only you can determine what is worth risk and what isn't.

My son rode in front of me when he was 5 months old, and we hit trails when he was about 10-12 months.  I'm a seasoned rider, and my gelding was also very steady.  But like someone else said, they're still animals, and stuff can happen, just have to weigh your options and do what you know best.  My son started riding in a buddy seat (behind me) when he was about 2.  He'd call out "faster, faster" and of course, my old nag just plodded along.  My son even kicked my horse  (in the flank of course), and we still just walked along. 

When he was 6 we finally got him a good trail horse, life was much easier after that! 

Sounds like you've got a good idea of yourself and horses too.  It's the people that can't ride to begin with, and have goofy horses that worry me!

Happy trails!

My personal feeling is that this thread was started to stir-up drama on the board.

As the owner of some once in a lifetime horses that I would 100% trust my life with I'd have said my kids could have ridden with me, but as the mother of a three month old I'd have to now say 100% no way.  I will let him start riding lessons at 6 if he wishes.

It is the responsibility of the parent to protect their child from harm the best way they can.  Animals are unpredictable and very small children can't move fast enough or be vigilant and watch for dangerous situations.  Remember it's not always "your" horse that causes the problems.  My husband worked the ER just long enough for me to get over the "it'll never happen to my child" mindset.

Please have helmets on your children at all times while riding.  Also, the above point about shaken baby syndrome is worth thinking about for infants. 

We started our child with riding lessons at 2 years and kept it up until she was about 4.  Some weeks it only amounted to brushing the pony and being led around the arena for 15 minutes, but it was well worth the investment.  She loves horses and riding!

"We did not start kids riding until they KNEW left from right..."

I'm still working on that one some days.

I used to work at a riding stable and we recommended not starting kids until age 6 as a general rule.  We did have a few that started earlier.  I had one at 3 that kept it up until 7 when she moved away.  She was mainly on a "pony ride" for the first 2 years, but she really enjoyed it, and always looked forward to her lessons.  On the flip side, I had parents that brought their 4 and 5 year old-basically wanting to force them into lessons-these kids SCREAMED and cried and wouldn't get near a horse.  Basically this is your decision and your responsibility, so if you are prepared to live with the consequences in the rare event that something did go wrong, then go ahead.  i would be sure to check that your insurance policies cover your baby in the event of an accident.  If not and something happens you could find yourself in financial ruin.  Overall-if your kids enjoy it and you are taking reasonable precautions against harm(helmets, boots, etc)-go for it.  We can't live as though we are afraid of getting hurt-those are the people that never have any joy in their lives! 

To learn, one has to be able to accept a critique. If your mind is already made up, you will learn nothing. There is a great deal of valuable experience in the previous threads, given by those with the best of intentions. Most of us have seen the results of horse related injuries, and would never wish them upon our or any child.

What's more important? The health of your child or the extent of your ego?

It all depends on the child. I was competing at 6. By the time I was 10, I was exercising 5 to 6 horses a day in the summers. But I was raised much like cowpony01's son and grew up with it. My younger brother wasn't on a horse more than a handful of times by the time he was 10. He just never took to it. Even the most gentle horses will occasionally do something to spook.  I have been knocked down, stepped on, bucked off, and drug through the dirt by horses, and have never broken a bone from a horse. Broke an arm on a swingset though when I was a kid. And fell on the ice a couple of years ago and had to have my shoulder operated on. Anything can happen at anytime. If we lived worried about what might happen, we'd never get out of bed in the morning.